A standard seven-pin (six circuits and one ground) SAE J560 electrical connector is commonly used to transmit electrical signals between a tractor and a trailer. One component comprises a receptacle containing seven pins. SAE J560 refers to a published standard by the Society of Automotive Engineers, “Primary and Auxiliary Seven Conductor Electrical Connector for Truck-Trailer Jumper Cable” SAE J560 (2009). The pins of such a connector are typically split pins. The mating component is a plug with seven sockets configured to receive the seven pins. The receptacle is typically provided on a trailer, while the plug is typically connected to a self-coiling cable attached to the rear of the tractor.
The electrical signals include lighting and ABS braking signals. Failure of the connector could result in a catastrophic vehicular accident.
The plug and receptacle are frequently mated and separated. This cycle repeats each time a trailer is separated from and hitched to a tractor. This repetitive cycle can be hostile to the integrity and alignment of the pins. The split pins are particularly vulnerable to deformation such as spreading, compression and other bending. As a consequence, the deformed pins may not make sound contact with the socket terminals unless the pins are straightened, and the split terminals are spread apart to the diameter of the socket and the pins are aligned with the sockets.
Unfortunately, straightening, spreading and re-aligning pins can be extremely tedious. Typically, a driver will urge each pin to a desired position using a screw driver. The process is imprecise and time consuming. Frequently, pins are accidently broken in the process. When a pin is broken, the receptacle must be removed and replaced, at great delay and expense. A need exists for a tool to quickly and reliably reconfigure the split pins of a SAE J560 electrical connector.
The invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems and solving one or more of the needs as set forth above.